Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - Chapel (Not So) Thrilled

Episode Date: February 7, 2024

Did Armondo Bacot speak too soon? We break down Clemson's upset and why the mens side of the ACC doesn't get the same respect as the women's. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

So if you say the ACC runs through you, guess what, buddy, you got to back it up. PJ Hall gave Armando Baycott the business. We'll talk about Clemson's second time winning in Chapel Hill. We'll also talk about some of the teams that are trying to buy for a spot in the NCAA tournament. Why we can argue a case for several who seem to still be on that bubble and why Virginia might just end up winning the regular season ACC. All of that on today's episode of Locked on ACC. You are Locked-on ACC, your daily podcast on the Atlantic Coast Conference, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day.

Hello, everybody. This is today's edition of Locked on ACC. I'm your host, Candace Cooper, joined by Kenton Gives of Locked on Wolfpack. Each and every day, you find us wherever we listen to podcasts. Make sure you download, subscribe to the pod from anywhere. Today's episode is brought to you by our friends at Fandu. Make Every Moment more. New customers join today.

and you'll get $200 in bonus vets. If your first bet of $5 or more wins, visit fandal.com slash locked on to get started. We are talking through some ACC hoops today. Apparently, the ACC runs through Armando Beacon, but he did not quite let PJ Hall know that. And PJ Hall had a nice response. Keep chopping wood.

And eventually you'll get that big top 10 win. And that's certainly what the Clemson Tigers did. Kenton, you know, I don't mind talking to. jump. But one thing about talking jump, baby, you're going to have to back that thing up now. John Shire might not listen to this show, but you know who does? You know who does? Mr. Hall. Tyler from Bartonberg.

Mr. P.J. Hall, listen to this show. You know why? Because you sat up there when I said, Armando Becott has not on both ends of the court risen to the level in the biggest moment. You said, what about against PJ Hall? And PJ Hall said, He rose to the level on defense against me. Not I. Couldn't be.

Not you? Then who? Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? And BJ said, don't worry about it. Don't worry about it. It was still a win in Chapel Hill. And that's certainly what the Clemson Tigers did. I mean, credit to him, Joe Girard, Schifflin.

Shefflin, Schifflin? I think it's Shefflin. I'm going to call a Shefflin, my ATL dog. You know, at the end of the day, everyone played their part, right? They came, popped them straight in the mouth, 15 to 2 to start out, and it was just all tigers all night. Now, did the heels come back in this game? Yes, but were they hung over from Duke? It was just very apparent. The crowd was hung over. Team was hung up. Coaching style was hung up. Everybody was just not in it, right? They got punched in the mouth and they didn't know

how to respond. They can't decide if, you know, good for ACC, bad for North Carolina, but either way it goes. It was just an off night for the heels. Oh, absolutely. And to think there are right right now, as of this very moment, there are five teams that are within two and a half games of North Carolina for the lead in terms of the ACC regular season crown. And Clemson is not one of them. Clemson is not one of them. Which is insane. Clemson is even in the next bracket, which is four games out. And so this is so fascinating to me because, again, this Clemson team showed up, showed out, and dare I say it, when it's winning time, when it was time for Armando to show that the ACCC ran through me, when they needed a big stop and it was time for Armando to put, say, hey, pump your brakes, enough. He couldn't do it. when it was time for Cadol to say, all right, enough.

Couldn't do it. When it was time for RJ to step in, he couldn't do it. And lo and behold, lo and behold, the mighty Clemson Tigers have made Tyler from, Tyler from Spartansburg. A very happy man. A very happy man. He's sleeping like a baby tonight because it turns out that the ACC, When Armando Bekot says the ACC runs through me, he meant like after a hard night of Taco Bell runs through you. You know, that type of deal.

You know, that's what he meant. Because this clearly didn't mean that it runs through me as in I dominate this. And all of the rest of you have to kind of revolve around me because that ain't the game. Well, you know, Kim, you're one who taught me about delusions of grandeur, right? You're the one who like when you really think highly of yourself. And in some sports capacities, you really do have to be. a little bit insane. You have to have some level of insanity

to truly believe you are the best of the best. I am wholeheartedly fully invested in that as a former athlete myself, you have to think you are hot fish grease. Okay, cool. Here's the other part of that, though. You have to also respond when tested. When your gangster is tested,

you have to come out on top. Not every time, because that's life, but more times than not. And especially with unranked teams, especially with the bigs who big on big, I don't know if it's always going to go in your favor, but you better act like you, come on. If the other people can't score on the team, listen, it's off night.

But if the big is out bigging you, we have a problem. And I got one thing also, Kenton, because you know how we get on this show here. And people always question us, right? Because we're just, you know, two scoundrels trying to figure this one out. But full circle 8-231, I'm going to call him by his full government. Okay. why are they acting like Bigot had one good game? Dude been having good games at UNC for the last half decade,

because he's so been there that long. You'd think this season was their first time covering the ACC. Deadface emoji. This whole episode reads as two fans of lower-tier teams who are begrudgingly admitting that a player on another team is actually good. You can tell me this whole episode was satire, and I believe it. Hell, I'd actually prefer if it was because then the lack of knowledge, especially regarding prior seasons would be admissible.

Fans have lowered tiered team just crazy, considering I'm a Carolina girl. But hey, how much you have it? I'm going to let you have it. Find it. I guess, I mean, averaging 10 and 8, his freshman year was true domination. We've never seen him. When you called him Mr. Double Double, when you say that he's one of the best to ever play the college game for Carolina.

But that's what, and the thing is, And here's the thing, right? This is why I love our fans and our listeners, the people who love us, the people who hate us, the people who are feeling different about us. I specifically said he can go crazy against a NC state. I specifically said he can go crazy against the Virginia Tech,

against the whoever. He does not do it on the biggest stages in the biggest moments. Do we need to pull up the national championship game? Because I'm not even trying to be funny at this point. And mind you, I didn't say, oh, he disappears offensively. I said take over the game on both sides of the ball, especially as a being. If you're a perimeter defender, with all due respect, you can be a great perimeter defender and not have as much of an impact on the game defensively as a,

great interior defender is because it's just numbers in the way this thing works out. You can stop one guy from shooting the ball or one guy from getting his spots, one guy from doing what he does if you're a great perimeter defender. If you're a big and you're a great defender, if you're a big and you not just offensively put on the show, because that was never the question. If anybody said Kenney, do you believe that Armando Becock can put up a double double in the big game? Duh, yeah. But if you're asking me, can he take?

Take the game over. That's a different conversation, which we saw again tonight. Did we not? Listen, I've always wanted him to be more than just a give and go guy, right? Like, be more than that, right? I asked you all off-season to find a jumper. You couldn't do that. Now you're trying to shoot threes.

Can't do that. You try to be funny and you over here wasted possessions. That's your business. But what I won't allow is for y'all to sit up here and tell us, that we ain't with our two eyeballs telling y'all that he is not going to be the change agent and difference maker for Carolina to continue to have success.

It is going to be that guard play, which Elliot Kadoe is going to have to grow up today. I'm trying to tell you something. And the crazy part is, and the crazy part of this whole thing is, and it's so interesting to say, it's almost as if we haven't watched U&C play in the past few years.

Because if you watch this show in the past few years, I have ridden, I have rolled till the wheels fell off for Armando Bacon. And I, as much as I didn't like doing it. But then the more I watched him, the more I realized, he can get it done offensively. Any night, he's the threat offensively and on the glass. But defensively, I mean, there's a reason. Liability. There's a reason he hasn't gone to the NBA.

And there's two major ones to me. the game outside of 10 feet, a committed post move that you know he can go to every time. Well, three really, a committed post move that you know this will work against NBA caliber defenders. And I can go to this. This is in my bag. And the third, he's not that level of defender.

He's not a plus defender to where you're like. Because Armando is on the court, our defense just got better. He doesn't play bully ball to me. And I'm not going to try to make this a big out bad show. But he does. doesn't bully people to get to the room. He bullies people. He can bully.

But we all know in our famous, who's our guy? Bullies get bullied. Yeah. And the thing is, and the thing is, and the worst part about having this conversation is now it seems like we're saying he played poorly in this game, which he didn't. He didn't. That's not what we're saying. It's when it's winning time, you need to take over and dominate an awful.

Maybe he needs to watch. winning time, right? Maybe he needs to watch the captain. Maybe he needs to go ahead and just find that inner chi of being... And like you said, and like you said, I wouldn't even say, hey, Baycott and his, you know, deficiencies defensively is

why they lost this game. There are many other reason. We've talked about Elliot Cado being self-checked for a while. Clemson exploited that. They, in essence, took the ball out of his hands because they said, you know what? If Elliot can hit open three, we'll give it to him. If Elliot can

knocked down a off the dribble mid-ranger, we'll give it to him. We'll give it to him. But what we're going to do is we're going to sag off him to make sure that their actual stars have a tough time at it. And they lived with that. They were okay with that. And so, you know, there were many reasons outside of Baycott why this game went the way it did. Like you talked about, the hangover effect, the hangover after massive win. That team was not locked in from a jump. And they, when they did get locked in, boom. there was like a switch flip and this was a totally different team that we were

watching. But to start off a game what was it, 15 to 2? You cannot do that in this ACC. You can't. Credit to them for fighting back. Credit to them for fighting back. But again, you put yourself in that

situation that ultimately made it so that you had to be darn near perfect in the second half and they weren't. Failed just short. The hangover looked. crazy. All right. The Super Bowl is so close. We want to make sure that you guys are ready to roll. Van Duel America's number one sportsbook, if you're like me, Super Bowl. Sunday is all about scoring the best seat on the couch, grabbing your favorite football snacks, and placing some super

bets. They've got everything you need, which players scored, touchdown, how many points will be scored, and so much more. New customers join and get $200 in bonus bets if your first bet of $5 or more wins. Just visit fandual.com slash lock on to sign up Today, it's fendool.com slash locked on. Make every moment more with Fandul, the official sportsbook partner of the NFL. All right, Kenton, you know, number three, North Carolina is taken down by unranked Clemson. A lot of people said, hey, you know, it just bees like that.

But more importantly, smile. That's great for the ACC, who is still fighting for people to get in this bad boy. Clemson certainly has made their case of why they need to get in. Duke is another one, and North Carolina would be the third. but a lot of people are saying Virginia on a fast start. So if you can remind us just real quick, for the regular season, just how many teams are in the hunt in the runnings, you know, for an opportunity to be the regular season champion?

Absolutely. So we talked about the whole deal with how many teams or how close and all that good stuff. Well, here's the breakdown at the moment. North Carolina is a top to conference in terms of conference record with a 10 and 2 record. Virginia, who comes from a 2 and 3 conference record to now have the longest winning streak in the conference at 7 games is 9 and 3 in conference and one game behind them.

The Duke Blue Devil, 7 and 3 in conference, 2 games behind them. NC State, Florida State, and Wake Forest, all 7 and 4 exactly 2 and 1 half games back. So those are the teams with a realistic shot at catching. North Carolina for the conference. And I find that to be appalling because many of these teams have to play North Carolina for their first time or play them again. And this is why it's like, ooh. Now hear me, hear me, hear me.

Florida State, they make an NCAA tournament. I think they should. I think they should. Because again, the ACC, when they get in that tournament, they act a fool every time. Virginia making that tournament? Now, Virginia is the one. Oh, Virginia got to make it. Virginia got to make it.

Did they at the fool in the tournament? All right. I'm trying. The national, Tony got him a Natty. It might be a flute, but we can talk about it. We can talk about it.

We can talk about it. It might be a flu. All right. I will say this. He has lost the double-digit seeds in the first round more times that he's won national championships. But winning a national championship is really, I was almost lost our clean rating, really freaking hard, really, really hard. It's a very difficult task to do.

Wait, force. deserves to be in the NCAA tournament? Find it. Find it. So here's what I'll say. Here's what I'll say. If Wake Forest continues to play the ball that they've been playing in terms of winning games of playing good ball, I think they're in. To me, to me, everybody above Miami needs to be in.

That's just my opinion. And I know people are going to tell me it's the ACC bias and whatnot. But the reality is all of the teams in this group except NC St. Dayton, wait for us, have wins against ranked teams, every single one of them. So I struggle to say these teams don't have impressive enough resumes when, again, the ACC is a tough conference. Yes, we know that Jordan and James Worthy and David Thompson and Ralph Samson and company are not walking through that door.

Yes, we understand that. We get that. We know Digger Phelps ain't on the sidelines no more. We understand that. We get that. We know that, you know, JJ Reddick and Christy Lennon, they ain't walking through that.

These are good teams. These are really good teams that these metrics are fooling people. These narratives are fooling people. And to think, oh, this is a bad team. This is a bad team. The narrative is, oh, Clemson Beat, you would say, oh, boy, this is just a terrible conference.

Not, well, that's a really good team that got beat by another team that's good. In the same way, the way Kansas loses to one of those unranked in the Big 12, the Big 12 is just a, oh, it's just a slaughterhouse. It's a slobber knocker every time those Big 12 teams get together. But for whatever reason, the ACC gets this little brother, oh, ill type of truth. Yeah, 100%.

And I think, you know, when you see Twitter and you see people having these, you know, disingenuous conversations or stuff for clicks, things like that, the fact that we, are like fighting with the mat. We're being seen as a mid-major. Like, it's insane. It's insane a little bit. And I just, I don't know the right answer. I don't know how we turn the page.

I know that somebody getting that auto bid, and I feel like it's going to be anybody's game. I don't necessarily think Carolina is a straight shooter. I don't think Duke's a straight shooter. I don't think that Clemson will even be there. It might surprise you in a Florida state and they figure out the depth that they've always known to be powerful with and end up with the W. Hell, Miami.

me, no, I'm just kidding. But it could be somebody, right, that we weren't expecting. You don't believe in North Chad. You don't believe in North Chad a company? Here's the thing, right? The way Miami is getting beat has me very consistent. When you have your head coach still sitting on the bench after, you know, things have gone down, that's a problem. Yeah, the last press conference was crazy.

They said, what changed after the first half? The game and just walked out. Boy, brother. And the way Wake Forest is finding their confidence. Yes, they don't. Doggwalk Georgia Tech tonight. The way Forest State was able to win a close one against Boston College, I think there's confidence around teams that know they can be great.

It's just so unfortunate that from a national POV, they are seen as Little Brother because you know full well if given the opportunity. You're going to take down a Texas Tech. I just feel like that way. You're going to challenge a Kansas State, I would argue. Purdue is overrated to me as well. I think Yukon's it. Yukon's the meka for me.

You call them the North Star. Everybody else, you can make a case one way or the other. Shout out to Jesus, Sheldeworth. Shout up to Jesus Sheldon. But, no, there's, there's, I mean, listen, I hear you. And I agree. I agree. I think that this conference deserves much more than it's getting.

And while we talked about UNC losing that game, Clemson also won it. Clemson also came out and dominated early. George DeRourne said, my orange may be different, but the shots still clean. Okay. You know what I mean? Nothing has changed here. I'm just a little bit older, a little bit wiser, a little bit better at this running the offense type of deal.

That's, you know, that's a team, again, and PJ Hall said, the ACC runs through who? PJ and Jeff said, big on big on big. I'm going to let you know. Yeah. Yeah. You don't earn it. And so with that being said, you know, I look around this conference and I say, There needs to be some respect paid.

There needs to be. And you know what's really insane about this conference? Georgia Tech right now is considered a bottom feeder, right? They're three and one against ranked teams. Damon is not playing around when he see that number next to your name. When he sees that number next to your name, that team start acting totally different. You ain't never a lie.

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exclusions apply. eBay, eBay guaranteed fit only available to U.S. customers. Let's lay in the plane. Let's lay in the plane. We'll play in the plane. We know the women. We're going to have about seven, eight teams in that bad boy. Oh, absolutely. And they should. And they should. Why are we fighting so hard on the men front? Because it ain't like the men's college basketball stage is just so, loaded to me. To me, anybody could be up there. Anybody could be down there. You got to play the games. Everybody got about three, four, five, about six losses that they, you know, we're sick of get back.

Yeah. Well, the talent on the women's side is quite literally so undeniable that it's like, it's not even, it's. So, for example, right, I talk all the time about how, you know, if, if Hannah Hidalgo was never born, Zoe Brooks would be the freshman in the year by mile, well, you know, you know, you take her around all of the power six conferences or so. I think she wins, you know, a freshman in a year and at least three or four of them. I think that she's obviously not beating out Juju at USC, but that's it. And then if you take Hannah, Hannah beats out everybody and is it a serious conversation with Juju? Like, oh, who's the, who's the gal between these two?

100%. The men's side does not have that same type of cachet in terms of the stars and the big names. You've got Elizabeth Kittley, superstar, player of the year nominee for many years straight, ACC player at a year coming back dominating. Her partner in crime, Amor, flatly amazing. You've got so many great players, Olivia Cochran, who is the centerpiece of an elite defense at Louisville. You know what I mean?

No van Liff, no problem. You got Sinai Rivers who has some of the most bizarre stat lines that you've ever seen. No Van Liff. I just had to make sure I thought I heard that. crazy because I thought you meant like, Hey, Lee Van Liff, who was like a power player, and I just, I wasn't going for that one. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm saying no Van Litt, no problem.

They're okay. You don't have that same cachet of stars at these schools with all due respect, right? Like, you just don't, you just don't have it. If we had that level of start, so, for example, if there were some of these stars on the women's

side said the ACC runs to me, it would not be met with mocking and derision the way that it was when Baycott said it and for a reason, right? Well, if they're, let's say, let's say North Carolina had upset North Carolina state. And that guard from North Carolina has said that, baby, that would have been a topsy-turvy. You would have never heard the end of it. If Daisy Kelly said.

I wasn't going to name her name, but you know. I mean, she plays in the conference, we got to talk about it. If Daisy Kelly said, well, you know, Courtney Bankard, they never won in Reynolds. So, you know, that is not really something we got to consider, seriously. But in all seriousness, if she, to me, but that's the thing, though. She had said that. And then the way Georgia Amor gave her that business. And that's, I don't think she's on pace for that type of starting.

You see what I'm saying? Like, I think that there are players in the ACC that are on that level. She's not. You know what I mean? That's just being respectful. I think she's a very good player. I think Georgia Amor would never do something like that, right? You know, you know, maybe Sinaii Richards would do something like that.

Who knows? Like, insert your star of the ACCP. But that's what I'm saying. The cachet is just not there. Like, we can have conversations about a few women, about a few folks on the women's side of things to say like, oh, this woman can say that. And who's no check her?

But I would also argue that, you know, you can say that, but literally the very next night you might get got. On the men's side, you might get got. So why would you say that, fool? Well, here's the thing. I don't think anybody should be saying it, but there are people with claims to it on the women's side.

There's not a single, Like, there's not a single player on the men's side that you're like, this guy has superstar written all over him. RJ Davis. R.J. Davis definitely has superstar written all over him. We're not playing those games tonight now. Don't piss me off. Don't piss me off.

Don't. Please don't. RJ is in national play. Okay. No, no, no. I'm saying superstar written all over him to where it's, if he said that, you can't really argue it meaningfully. But you know why he doesn't say that?

Because he lets his game speak for his. stuff and that's exactly what he needed to go to time of his big counterpart and they need to go ahead be on the same page one accord just play the game just play the game they're like they call the players only meeting after the last loss I want to see what they're going to do after this one I want to see because they better be at that tone when a lot to get ready to do some spritz again that's two of the last three that's two of last three on ice they need to go again and they got to go to play in miami a pissed off Miami who just got dog walked by the last team they just lost two so yeah I hate to be them

But, but, you know, I just think that the cachet isn't there. I just think the cachet isn't there in terms of star power. And also, the legends in coaching for the women's side are like, they're in that mode of fully cementing the legendary status in this moment. Coach Ivy, cementing her legendary status at this moment in who she is. Westmore, cementing his legendary status. Kenny Brooks, cementing who he is or what he is. of what this team is. They're cementing that.

Coach Walls in Louisville. He's cementing or cemented rather, what his teams are or who these teams are. Shire's new. Huber Davis is new. Who else do you think of any ACC? Bennett is a legend. No offense or much about that. Stop playing with Tony Bennett.

You're going to stop playing with Tony. And you're making me defend him during February. It's making me upset. It's made me very upset right now. But anyway, you've got absolute legends in the game on the women's side or folks who are going to go on to, we all know, some of these coaches are good. There's going to be more Final Force. There's going to be more national champions. There's going to be more of that from all of those coaches.

You know somebody in that group is going to do those things. On the midside, you got Bennett. And who else? Huber, last year people were calling for his job, even though he's doing a hell of a job. right now has been to a natty you have shire who you and i both feel like conversations need to be had about that they're not happening that that's just not happening but it needs to happen right that if if you know in the words of coach jem harbaw folks on third base think they hit a home run when they get home hello brother shire come on in the room but what other coach would you say is like that that level right

I think we're both very high on Forbes, but nationally, what can you say? What is his cachet nationally? I think that, you know, in the basketball world, Forbes is very much stamped. It's just the relevance that you get from a national standpoint. Sure, I think someone who to watch for certainly is Stadamire. I think he has a lot to offer this game. I think he is going to, he has a very young team that's figuring it out as by way of getting their butt-woped by a wake force. But that to me is a coach that knows full, full,

what he's got in him. I think with Clemson and how you recruit Brown, my boy name, I want to say Brownwell every time. It's Brownville? Brown, Brown. I believe it's Brown. It's a B. It's a B. I'm pretty. But I know that he, you know, who wants to come play basketball at Clemson?

It's very few and far between, but it's changing. I think he's changed the climate in the culture of what Clemson men's basketball has come to be. So I think it's just very interesting. And then Syracuse, he ain't quite counting them out because they are heading a storied program. We got a long video. Shout out to Benny Williams,

who's trying to figure out his journey. And Benny is brand new at the head coaching ranks. And that's what I'm saying. You don't have that say, oh, that's Beheim's team. We'll give Beheim and company the benefit of the doubt because that's all Jim. You can't play with him. Oh, that's this team. Oh, you beat Coach K versus you beat Shire.

You beat Roy Williams. versus you beat Hubert Davis. You know, I think it's not fair. I think it's not right. I think that these teams deserve that love and national cachet is just not having. I 100% agree with you. So what I will say is, you know, like we always do,

we have a lot of fans here. We have a lot of dissenters here. Either way it goes, you know, whatever you clicked it, you viewed it, however you got to get your time passed. What I want to know is what are your thoughts on not only tonight's game for North Carolina, but how it benefits the ACC?

Are you fine with it? Are you fine with it? Are you cool with it? You rocking with it? Are there teams that should be getting more love that aren't? Let us know that. And then from there, who should we be keeping our eye on? Who is that underdog when it comes to the ACC tournament that could potentially get that auto bid, right,

as we're looking towards the end of the season. You ain't got a lot of games left. You got a couple chances to get it right. So you better figure it out, figure it out fast. You know, that's just what it is. We'll have more to come here through the rest. of the week as we update you on all things, ACC Hoops, Football, and more.

So don't want to miss any of it. Check out and catch up on all of the latest episodes. And we're out of here for Candace Cooper and Kenton Gibbs. Until next time.